Going Stag
by BlueRubies
Summary: There's a school dance at Hogwarts. And James Potter has his eye on Lily Evans. His heart is set on her, and only her. But as fate has it, Lily simply refuses to go out with him, let alone speak to him. He's tried everything, and I mean everything, to get


**_Going Stag_**

_Summary_: There's a school dance at Hogwarts. And James Potter has his eye on Lily Evans. His heart is set on her, and only her. But as fate has it, Lily simply refuses to go out with him, let alone speak to him. He's tried everything, and I mean everything, to get her attention. Follow James through his constant attempts to win Lily's heart.

_Disclaimer:_ As much as a I wish I could, I do not own the Harry Potter series or any of its characters.

_Author's Note_: I just wanted to see if this story works. I'm not sure if I'll continue. It depends on if you guys like it. But it is worth a shot. I'm going to presume that you know James and everyone else and the relationships and everything so I'm not gonna explain too much of all that stuff. This is gonna be in first person from James' POV. Happy reading! Oh, and don't forget to review!

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**Chapter One:**

"Okay, son, have you got everything?"

"Yes, dad."

My dad stood next to me, looking at his watch. Because Kings Cross Station was always swarming with people, specifically non-magic people, he was wearing a stiff business suit, not unlike his usual, stuffy business robes. He looked up at me and cleared his throat, "Now, I'm sorry I can't stay to see you off, but…"

"but you have very important business to tend to," I finished. That was always his excuse.

"Exactly," he replied curtly. "Now, you behave, James. I don't want to hear from Professor Dumbledore that you have been causing trouble."

"Yes, dad."

"I will see you for Christmas holidays," he said, stretching his hand out.

"Right," I said as I briefly shook it.

As a stream of people hurriedly pushed past me, I put my duffel bad on to the trolley and started for the barrier between Platform 9 and Platform 10. Just before passing through it, I turned one last time to look for my dad, who, not surprisingly, had already disappeared into the crowd. I suppose I was a bit stupid to think he would actually stay for at least a few minutes, especially since it was my last year at Hogwarts or since I had made Head Boy. I thought that would finally give him a reason to be proud of me. Becoming the youngest Quidditch captain in Hogwarts history during fourth year wasn't enough for him. Why would becoming Head Boy be any different? Actually, when I look back, I guess it was different…in a way. This time I got a "Good" from him, followed by "this will finally force you to grow up some." But that's just how my dad is now.

Platform 9 ¾ came into sight, the smoke from the scarlet train billowing in the crisp wind and the students scrambling around to find lost pets and old friends. It looked just as it did six years ago the first time I boarded the Hogwarts Express. I can remember waiting excitedly impatient while my mother fussed over every little detail from my hair to the vitamins I had conveniently left under my bed. The moment she released me from her arms, I gave my good-byes and ran onto the train, anxious to begin my life at Hogwarts.

This time, however, it felt bittersweet. This would be my last year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Hogwarts was more than a school to me…it was my home…more of a home than my own house anyway. It would be good to get back.

"Oy, James! Over here!" a voice said, snapping me out of my reminiscing. Sirius Black, my best friend, came running towards me. "Hey, mate," he slapped me on the back. "Miss me?"

"About as much as I would miss a canker sore," I retorted jokingly.

He gave a mock offended look. "Oh, excuse me then. I can tell when I'm not wanted."

I laughed and asked, "So, how is the family?" He grabbed the empty cage from the top of my luggage. My owl, Barnie, was off, delivering a letter to my aunt in Scotland. We headed towards the train.

Sirius groaned, just as I had expected him to. "How could you leave me alone with that woman!" If you thought my dad was bad, Sirius' mother was a trillion times worse. Four years ago, Sirius had a huge falling-out with his family, and my family graciously welcomed him into ours. For the first time since he had left his family, Sirius went back to his childhood home to visit his ill uncle for the day. Obviously, it hadn't gone too well.

"Come on, mate. Moony and Wormtail are probably waiting for us." The two of us climbed into the coach and headed towards the familiar compartment at the back of the train.

On either side of us, there were compartments with students throwing snitches, chatting about their summers, and running wildly back and forth looking for anyone they knew. As we walked on, everyone stopped what they were doing to see who was passing. Sirius would always yell to them, if it was nice or rude depended entirely on the audience.

When we reached the back of the train, we found Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew sitting and playing a game of Exploding Snap. "Prongs! Padfoot!" Peter squeaked.

"Hullo," I said, throwing my duffel into the overhead bin.

Sirius flung himself into the chair. He reached behind it and triumphantly pulled his hand back up to reveal a dusty piece of chewed Drooble's Everlasting gum. "Hey, look! It's still where I left it!" he said, popping it into his mouth.

"That's gross, Padfoot." I told him, but laughed anyway. I plopped down next to him. "How you feeling, Moony?"

"Alright," he said. The full moon was last week. He still looked a bit worn out. His face was paler than usual and his eyes were sullen. Usually, we try to be with him for his transformation even in the summer, but Sirius and I couldn't be with him this time because we had to go to yet another dull ministry dinner.

"Okay, enough small talk! Let's get down to business," Sirius clapped. "It's the Marauders' last year at Hogwarts, and we need to go out with a bang! So shall we start with any suggestions for the Back-to-School Extravaganza?" He rolled out a piece of parchment and wrote on the top "Suggestions for the Back-to-School Extravaganza."

Peter started to list off some ideas but got no reaction. "Come on, Wormtail," I groaned. "We've done all those before! They're getting old!"

"I don't know, Prongs. The potions-in-the-juice-bowl trick has never failed us. It's classic. It will never get old," said Remus.

"Okay, so what else?" We started rattling off ideas. A half an hour later, we had a rough plan for the 'Extravaganza.'

While we were wrapping things up, Remus chuckled, "We better be really careful this year, or else our dear Head Boy will get into trouble."

"Or maybe," Sirius added. "It will be to our advantage. Now we can get away with all sorts of things." Remus, Sirius, and Peter joked about all the things they could pull off without getting into trouble…stuff that was prohibited but that we did anyway.

Head Boy. That reminded me. _Shit_. I was late. The Prefects meeting. _Shit!_ I had forgotten all about it. I grabbed my badge and wand and ran out of the compartment. "I got to go!" Already on the first day of the job, I was turning out to be a lousy Head Boy.

When I got to the front of the train, I heard the Head Girl say, "Okay, that's all for now. I will notify you about your other duties sometime in the near future. Thank you. You all can leave now, if you wish."

I waited as all the others poured out of the compartment to return back to their friends. I was not familiar with the prefects' compartment as I had never been a prefect before. I was just as shocked as anyone when I received the letter with the badge stating that I was the new Head Boy. The compartment was four times as big as a regular one and was decked out in plush, scarlet velvet. I wished that I could have taken the time to enjoy the comfort of the room, but I knew I had some major groveling to do.

When most everyone was gone, I turned to speak to the Head Girl. And there she was…Lily Evans, the Head Girl Badge gleaming on the front of her T-shirt. She was bent over, quietly speaking and laughing with a fifth year Hufflepuff. I don't know why I was so surprised to see her. She was the obvious choice for Head Girl…top of the class, responsible, nice to everyone, not to mention absolutely gorgeous. She was perfect. It was no wonder she had invaded my dreams on several occasions during the summer. I can't tell you how much I liked Lily Evans. I had been chasing after her for years. But nothing had ever come of it because as far as she was concerned, I was lower than scum. And I'll admit I was a pretty big arse whenever I was around her. Somehow, I always managed to make myself look like a jerk and an idiot in front of her. Maybe I was trying to impress her…I don't know. I was never unlucky with the fairer sex, in fact, I was quite the opposite. But with Lily, I could never get it right. That would all change this year. This year, I was going to show her who I really was. This year, I was finally going to win her heart.

When the other kid left, Lily began to tidy up the place. I cleared my throat in attempt to get rid of the lump in it and to say something...hopefully not something I would regret later.

"You're too late," Lily said without even turning around. "The meeting is already over. As Head Boy, you should have the decency to…" She stopped dead when she saw me. "Potter," she growled, narrowing her eyes. "What are you doing here? This is for Prefects only! Get out!"

"Relax, my dearest Lily. I have just as much right to be here as you do," I smiled nicely, running my hand through my hair quickly.

She put her hands on her hips, her very womanly hips, if I might add. "What are you on about! Shove off, Potter!"

I flashed her my badge and the biggest grin I could muster. She was speechless for a few moments, while her face turned bright red. Damn, she looked good.


End file.
